Nat King Cole — Entertainer, and Political Activist

Nat King Cole began performing in the late 1930s and spanned almost three decades, with over one hundred songs recorded that became hits on the pop charts. Cole was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. He died of Lung Cancer at the age of forty-five.

Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole, was born in Montgomery, AL on March 17, 1919, and died February 15, 1965, in Santa Monica, CA. He was married to Maria Cole from 1948–1965, and Nadine Robinson from 1937–1948. He had four children Natlie, Nat Kelly, Casey and Timolin Cole, along with three grandchildren Robert Adam Yancy, Julian Augustus, Justin Augustus.

However, Cole considered himself an entertainer and not an activist, as he often sought to assimilate with a white audience. The year 1956 was a pivotal year for Nat King Cole, and he began not just as an entertainer but also a pioneer for equal rights.

He joined other black entertainers in boycotting Jim Crow audiences, became a lifetime member of the NAACP, and took pains for the rest of his life to be a more visible participant in the civil rights movement, including playing a significant role in the 1963

At the same time, however, he contributed to civil rights causes such as the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and he filed lawsuits against northern hotels that refused him service. Still, Cole’s performances for “Jim Crow” audiences disturbed black activists.